Method and apparatus for transmitting S1AP signaling

Abstract

Disclosed are an S1AP signaling transmission method and apparatus. The method comprises: an intelligent mobile edge device receives an SCTP message carrying uplink S1AP signaling of a terminal sent by a Small Cell, determines an operator network corresponding to the terminal according to an S1AP ID carried in the uplink S1AP signaling, and sends the SCTP message carrying the uplink S1AP signaling to the He-GW of the operator network; the intelligent mobile edge device receives an SCTP message carrying downlink S1AP signaling of the terminal sent by the He-GW of the operator network, determines the Small Cell corresponding to the terminal according to an S1AP ID carried in the downlink S1AP signaling, and sends the SCTP message carrying the downlink S1AP signaling to the Small Cell. In this way, a Small Cell may access networks of multiple operators to provide network services for terminals of different operators.

The invention claimed is: 
     
       1. A method for transmitting S1 Application Protocol (S1AP) signaling, the method comprising:
 receiving, by a smart edge device, a Stream Control Transmission Protocol (SCTP) message, carrying uplink S1AP signaling of a terminal, transmitted by a small cell, determining an operator network corresponding to the terminal based upon an S1 Access Point Identifier (S1AP ID) carried in the uplink S1AP signaling, and transmitting the SCTP message carrying the uplink S1AP signaling to a signaling gateway (He-GW) of the operator network; and 
 receiving, by the smart edge device, an SCTP message, carrying downlink S1AP signaling of the terminal, transmitted by the He-GW of the operator network, determining the small cell corresponding to the terminal based upon an S1AP ID carried in the downlink S1AP signaling, and transmitting the SCTP message carrying the downlink S1AP signaling to the small cell. 
 
     
     
       2. The method according to  claim 1 , wherein determining the operator network corresponding to the terminal based upon the S1AP ID carried in the uplink S1AP signaling comprises:
 obtaining, by the smart edge device, operator information corresponding to the terminal based upon an SCTP message, carrying first uplink S1AP signaling of the terminal, transmitted by the small cell, wherein the first uplink S1AP signaling carries a first S1AP ID allocated for the terminal by the small cell, and the first S1AP ID carries information about an operator corresponding to the terminal. 
 
     
     
       3. The method according to  claim 2 , wherein determining the operator network corresponding to the terminal based upon the S1AP ID carried in the uplink S1AP signaling, and transmitting the SCTP message carrying the uplink S1AP signaling to the He-GW of the operator network comprises:
 creating, by the smart edge device, an S1AP ID mapping relationship according to the first S1AP ID, and transmitting the SCTP message carrying the uplink S1AP signaling to the He-GW of the operator network based upon the S1AP ID mapping relationship; and 
 determining the small cell corresponding to the terminal based upon the S1AP ID carried in the downlink S1AP signaling, and transmitting the SCTP message carrying the downlink S1AP signaling to the small cell comprises: 
 adjusting, by the smart edge device, the S1AP ID mapping relationship according to the S1AP ID carried in the downlink S1AP signaling, determining the small cell corresponding to the terminal based upon the adjusted S1AP ID mapping relationship, and transmitting the SCTP message carrying the downlink S1AP signaling to the small cell. 
 
     
     
       4. The method according to  claim 3 , wherein creating, by the smart edge device, the S1AP ID mapping relationship according to the first S1AP ID, and transmitting the SCTP message carrying the uplink S1AP signaling to the He-GW of the operator network based upon the S1AP ID mapping relationship comprises:
 allocating, by the smart edge device, a second S1AP ID for the terminal, wherein the second S1AP ID is a unique identifier allocated for the terminal by the smart edge device in the small cell hosted by the smart edge device; 
 creating, by the smart edge device, the S1AP ID mapping relationship based upon the first S1AP ID and the second S1AP ID; and 
 transmitting, by the smart edge device, an SCTP message carrying second uplink S1AP signaling of the terminal to the He-GW of the operator network based upon the S1AP ID mapping relationship and the operator information, wherein the second uplink S1AP signaling carries the second S1AP ID. 
 
     
     
       5. The method according to  claim 4 , wherein adjusting, by the smart edge device, the S1AP ID mapping relationship according to the S1AP ID carried in the downlink S1AP signaling, determining the small cell corresponding to the terminal based upon the adjusted S1AP ID mapping relationship, and transmitting the SCTP message carrying the downlink S1AP signaling to the small cell comprises:
 receiving, by the smart edge device, an SCTP message carrying first downlink S1AP signaling of the terminal, wherein the SCTP message carrying the first downlink S1AP signaling is a message returned by the He-GW of the operator network based upon the SCTP message carrying the second uplink S1AP signaling, the first downlink S1AP signaling carries the second S1AP ID and a third S1AP ID, and the third S1AP ID is allocated for the terminal by the He-GW of the operator network; 
 allocating, by the smart edge device, a fourth S1AP ID for the terminal; 
 adjusting, by the smart edge device, the S1AP ID mapping relationship based upon the first S1AP ID, the second S1AP ID, the third S1AP ID, and the fourth S1AP ID; 
 determining, by the smart edge device, the small cell corresponding to the terminal according to the second S1AP ID; and 
 transmitting, by the smart edge device, an SCTP message carrying second downlink S1AP signaling of the terminal to the small cell based upon the adjusted S1AP ID mapping relationship, wherein the second downlink signaling carries the fourth S1AP ID and the first S1AP ID. 
 
     
     
       6. The method according to  claim 5 , wherein receiving, by the smart edge device, the SCTP message, carrying the uplink S1AP signaling of the terminal, transmitted by the small cell, determining the operator network corresponding to the terminal based upon the S1AP ID carried in the uplink S1AP signaling, and transmitting the SCTP message carrying the uplink S1AP signaling to the He-GW of the operator network comprises:
 receiving, by the smart edge device, the SCTP message, carrying the uplink S1AP signaling comprising the first S1AP ID and the fourth S1AP ID, transmitted by the small cell; and 
 determining, by the smart edge device, the second S1AP ID and the third S1AP ID based upon the first S1AP ID and the S1AP ID mapping relationship, and transmitting the SCTP message carrying the uplink S1AP signaling comprising the second S1AP ID and the third S1AP ID to the He-GW of the operator network. 
 
     
     
       7. The method according to  claim 6 , wherein receiving, by the smart edge device, the SCTP message, carrying the downlink S1AP signaling of the terminal, transmitted by the He-GW of the operator network, determining the small cell based upon the S1AP ID carried in the downlink S1AP signaling, and transmitting the SCTP message carrying the downlink S1AP signaling to the small cell comprises:
 receiving, by the smart edge device, the SCTP message, carrying the downlink S1AP signaling comprising the second S1AP ID and the third S1AP ID, transmitted by the He-GW of the operator network; and 
 determining, by the smart edge device, the first S1AP ID and the fourth S1AP ID based upon the second S1AP ID and the S1AP ID mapping relationship, and transmitting the SCTP message carrying the downlink S1AP signaling comprising the first S1AP ID and the fourth S1AP ID to the small cell. 
 
     
     
       8. The method according to  claim 5 , wherein receiving, by the smart edge device, the SCTP message, carrying the downlink S1AP signaling of the terminal, transmitted by the He-GW of the operator network, determining the small cell based upon the S1AP ID carried in the downlink S1AP signaling, and transmitting the SCTP message carrying the downlink S1AP signaling to the small cell comprises:
 receiving, by the smart edge device, the SCTP message, carrying the downlink S1AP signaling comprising the second S1AP ID and the third S1AP ID, transmitted by the He-GW of the operator network; and 
 determining, by the smart edge device, the first S1AP ID and the fourth S1AP ID based upon the second S1AP ID and the S1AP ID mapping relationship, and transmitting the SCTP message carrying the downlink S1AP signaling comprising the first S1AP ID and the fourth S1AP ID to the small cell. 
 
     
     
       9. An apparatus for transmitting S1Application Protocol (S1AP) signaling, the apparatus comprising:
 a requesting unit configured to receive an SCTP message, carrying uplink S1AP signaling of a terminal, transmitted by a small cell, to determine an operator network corresponding to the terminal based upon an S1Access Point Identifier (S1AP ID) carried in the uplink S1AP signaling, and to transmit the SCTP message carrying the uplink S1AP signaling to an He-GW of the operator network; and 
 a responding unit configured to receive an SCTP message, carrying downlink S1AP signaling of the terminal, transmitted by the He-GW of the operator network, to determine the small cell corresponding to the terminal based upon an S1AP ID carried in the downlink S1AP signaling, and to transmit the SCTP message carrying the downlink S1AP signaling to the small cell. 
 
     
     
       10. The apparatus according to  claim 9 , wherein the requesting unit is further configured to determine the operator network corresponding to the terminal based upon the S1AP ID carried in the uplink S1AP signaling by:
 obtaining operator information corresponding to the terminal based upon an SCTP message, carrying first uplink S1AP signaling of the terminal, transmitted by the small cell, wherein the first uplink S1AP signaling carries a first S1AP ID allocated for the terminal by the small cell, and the first S1AP ID carries information about an operator corresponding to the terminal. 
 
     
     
       11. The apparatus according to  claim 10 , wherein the requesting unit is further configured to determine the operator network corresponding to the terminal based upon the S1AP ID carried in the uplink S1AP signaling, and to transmit the SCTP message carrying the uplink S1AP signaling to the He-GW of the operator network by:
 creating an S1AP ID mapping relationship according to the first S1AP ID, and transmitting the SCTP message carrying the uplink S1AP signaling to the He-GW of the operator network based upon the S1AP ID mapping relationship; and 
 the responding unit is further configured to determine the small cell corresponding to the terminal based upon the S1AP ID carried in the downlink S1AP signaling, and to transmit the SCTP message carrying the downlink S1AP signaling to the small cell by: 
 adjusting the S1AP ID mapping relationship according to the S1AP ID carried in the downlink S1AP signaling, determining the small cell corresponding to the terminal based upon the adjusted S1AP ID mapping relationship, and transmitting the SCTP message carrying the downlink S1AP signaling to the small cell. 
 
     
     
       12. The apparatus according to  claim 11 , wherein the requesting unit is further configured to create the S1AP ID mapping relationship according to the first S1AP ID, and to transmit the SCTP message carrying the uplink S1AP signaling to the He-GW of the operator network based upon the S1AP ID mapping relationship by:
 allocating a second S1AP ID for the terminal, wherein the second S1AP ID is a unique identifier allocated for the terminal by a smart edge device in the small cell hosted by the smart edge device; 
 creating the S1AP ID mapping relationship based upon the first S1AP ID and the second S1AP ID; and 
 transmitting an SCTP message carrying second uplink S1AP signaling of the terminal to the He-GW of the operator network based upon the S1AP ID mapping relationship and the operator information, wherein the second uplink S1AP signaling carries the second S1AP ID. 
 
     
     
       13. The apparatus according to  claim 12 , wherein the requesting unit is further configured to adjust the S1AP ID mapping relationship according to the S1AP ID carried in the downlink S1AP signaling, to determine the small cell corresponding to the terminal based upon the adjusted S1AP ID mapping relationship, and to transmit the SCTP message carrying the downlink S1AP signaling to the small cell by:
 receiving an SCTP message carrying first downlink S1AP signaling of the terminal, wherein the SCTP message carrying the first downlink S1AP signaling is a message returned by the He-GW of the operator network based upon the SCTP message carrying the second uplink S1AP signaling, the first downlink S1AP signaling carries the second S1AP ID and a third S1AP ID, and the third S1AP ID is allocated for the terminal by the He-GW of the operator network; 
 allocating a fourth S1AP ID for the terminal; 
 adjusting the S1AP ID mapping relationship based upon the first S1AP ID, the second S1AP ID, the third S1AP ID, and the fourth S1AP ID; 
 determining the small cell corresponding to the terminal according to the second S1AP ID; and 
 transmitting an SCTP message carrying second downlink S1AP signaling of the terminal to the small cell based upon the adjusted S1AP ID mapping relationship, wherein the second downlink signaling carries the fourth S1AP ID and the first S1AP ID. 
 
     
     
       14. The apparatus according to  claim 13 , wherein the requesting unit is further configured to receive the SCTP message, carrying the uplink S1AP signaling of the terminal, transmitted by the small cell, to determine the operator network corresponding to the terminal based upon the S1AP ID carried in the uplink S1AP signaling, and to transmit the SCTP message carrying the uplink S1AP signaling to the He-GW of the operator network by:
 receiving the SCTP message, carrying the uplink S1AP signaling comprising the first S1AP ID and the fourth S1AP ID, transmitted by the small cell; and 
 determining the second S1AP ID and the third S1AP ID based upon the first S1AP ID and the S1AP ID mapping relationship, and transmitting the SCTP message carrying the uplink S1AP signaling comprising the second S1AP ID and the third S1AP ID to the He-GW of the operator network. 
 
     
     
       15. The apparatus according to  claim 14 , wherein the responding unit is further configured to receive the SCTP message, carrying the downlink S1AP signaling of the terminal, transmitted by the He-GW of the operator network, to determine the small cell based upon the S1AP ID carried in the downlink S1AP signaling, and to transmit the SCTP message carrying the downlink S1AP signaling to the small cell by:
 receiving the SCTP message, carrying the downlink S1AP signaling comprising the second S1AP ID and the third S1AP ID, transmitted by the He-GW of the operator network; and 
 determining the first S1AP ID and the fourth S1AP ID based upon the second S1AP ID and the S1AP ID mapping relationship, and transmitting the SCTP message carrying the downlink S1AP signaling comprising the first S1AP ID and the fourth S1AP ID to the small cell. 
 
     
     
       16. The apparatus according to  claim 13 , wherein the responding unit is further configured to receive the SCTP message, carrying the downlink S1AP signaling of the terminal, transmitted by the He-GW of the operator network, to determine the small cell based upon the S1AP ID carried in the downlink S1AP signaling, and to transmit the SCTP message carrying the downlink S1AP signaling to the small cell by:
 receiving the SCTP message, carrying the downlink S1AP signaling comprising the second S1AP ID and the third S1AP ID, transmitted by the He-GW of the operator network; and 
 determining the first S1AP ID and the fourth S1AP ID based upon the second S1AP ID and the S1AP ID mapping relationship, and transmitting the SCTP message carrying the downlink S1AP signaling comprising the first S1AP ID and the fourth S1AP ID to the small cell.